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Natural History Museum, London

Cromwell Road, Greater London, England

Description

The Natural History Museum exhibits collections across botany, entomology (insects), mineralogy, palaeontology and zoology. It is also a research centre specializing in taxonomy, identification and conservation. The museum is particularly famous for its dinosaur skeletons as well as the blue whale skeleton hanging from the central hall vaulted ceiling.

Access & Transport

Located along Exhibition Road in South Kensington, near the Science Museum and the Victoria & Albert Museum, the closest underground station is South Kensington (Circle and District lines), a short 5' walk away. Plenty of bus services along Cromwell rd and Exhibition rd as well make this a pretty convenient place to reach.

Instructions & Recommendations

Note: access to the permanent collections is free but not to the temporary exhibitions We strongly recommend booking your free tickets online ahead of time to make sure you are allowed to enter (system in place to avoid overcrowding). Plan on staying around 2-3h and discover the South Kensington neighbourhood. If you are up for it there is the Science Museum next door and the Victoria & Albert Museum across Exhibition rd but better not pile up museum visits in a single day. We also recommend arriving and/or leaving by foot through other neighbourhoods: west is High Street Kensington, south is Chelsea, east are Knightsbridge and Belgravia, and north is Hyde Park.

Meta review

This museum is one of the city's most popular and visited attractions, it regularly features in magazines and plenty of reviews and related blog entries can be found on the internet. Most visitors enjoy the breadth of specimens on display and the fact that there is enough to see for several visits. Most of the negative comments stem from the occasional presence of unruly kids and noisy school groups

Environmental & Social

Reasonable environment impact to run the museum. Positive from a social perspective by helping spread culture.

Conclusion

We would highly recommend a visit to the National History Museum to anybody who enjoys grand building architecture (very eye catching both from the outside and inside) and/or love building up his/her knowledge base across various areas of nature and sciences. It is also one of the best cultural choices for families.

Key positive

Very impressive and wide collections

No entrance fee for the permanent collection

location is quite central

Key negative

Too many kids at time can make for a noisy atmosphere

No live dinosaurs…

Building layout is not the friendliest for visitors with mobility issues

Suitability

The museum is suitable for all ages and kids should enjoy their visit. For wheelchair users, better use the step-free entrance on Exhibition rd and there is a lift to the upper floor.

About this Rating

TYPE

Onsite

RESEARCHED IN

May 2024

PROVIDER

Koreval

Included Items
None
Timing
Duration of visit
closed 24-26 December

av. transport time:0h 30m

est. visit time:2h 30m

Regulated hours

Monday10:00 - 17:45

Tuesday10:00 - 17:45

Wednesday10:00 - 17:45

Thursday10:00 - 17:45

Friday10:00 - 17:45

Saturday10:00 - 17:45

Sunday10:00 - 17:45

Pricing
Free

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